It is known to provide article carriers which are used to package and display containers of food and/or beverages, including bottles of beer, wine, soda, and other drinks. Such article carriers typically provide support over the bottoms of the bottles or along their lengths. The bottles can be enclosed in a corrugated box or other packaging material. Examples of article carriers include U.S. Pat. No. 2,020,454 to Bisbee et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,757 to Funkhouser; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,019 to Ganz et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,325,210 to Henry, Jr. discloses a wine bottle package for shipping bottles of wine in a corrugated box 22. A molded pulp tray 30 supports the bottoms of the wine bottles within the box, while a pulp protector 40 holds the tops of the bottles. Flange portions 35 and 48 in the tray and pulp protector, respectively, serve to restrain the bottles from lateral movement within the box 22. Therefore, the patent to Henry, Jr. discloses a package for supporting wine bottles at both the tops and bottoms thereof to prevent damage during shipping.
While it is known to provide article carriers which support bottles from their sides and bottoms, it would be desirable to provide a bottle holder able to carry and support one or more bottles solely from their top portions.